Escalator

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This work was painted at Saskatoon in Saskatchewan, Canada, during the summer of 1988. McLean uses a particularly fluid paint to make his large paintings, allowing him to work quickly and spontaneously. In 'Escalator' he has used large bands of colour arranged in a balanced and harmonious sequence. McLean's paintings typically contain these distinctive lozenges and strokes of brightly coloured paint. The translucence of the paint in 'Escalator' gives the painting a lightness, which combines with the lyrical use of colour to suggest a spiritual dimension to the painting.

Details

Acc. No.GMA 3476

MediumAcrylic on canvas

Size185.70 x 89.00 cm

CreditPurchased 1989

John McLean (Scottish, born 1939)

John McLean was born in Liverpool to Scottish parents. He studied at St Andrews University from 1957 to 1962 and at the Courtauld Institute of Art in London from 1963 to 1966. McLean taught at various art schools in London from 1966 and had his first solo exhibition in 1975. Colour is at the root of all McLean's paintings. He works on a large scale, painting spontaneously onto the canvas using fluid paints to make abstract and rhythmic compositions. McLean lived in New York in the late 1980s.